February 24, 2010

Free speech, the right to express ones opinion in public as well as the right to listen or to read different opinions is a basic democratic and human right.

Reading different opinions and points of view are necessary to be able to develop critical thinking skills as well as comprehending different points of view. Reading different opinions is also necessary to learn that oneself is not the center of the universe.

The US is known as the country with allegedly free speech. I call this “First Amendment” the “Right to insult” because nowhere else my right of free speech is so often violated like on “liberal” or ” white anti-racist” American message boards, blogs etc. but also nowhere else Americans can offend and discriminate so freely without being moderated, as long as they are ‘on the side’ of the moderator.

‘Liberal’ white blogs etc. are the perfect example of subtle and often unnoticed discrimination, where the moderaters abuse their power to empower white supremacy and silence “counter-racism”.
And this what happens on the internet only reflects what happens in real life. Moderators who are also teachers or academics in real life do have the power to silence those who do not necessarily always agree. This is the way how white supremacy is kept alive, mostly only those in line with white supremacy will be successful.

Those who preach “tolerance” and “human rights” are very often quite quick to violate the rights of others when it is about protecting their image they are trying to keep up in a society where image is more important than true being and success does not come with honesty.
And while those who preach about justice accept and reinforce discrimination by their way of moderating – letting racist, biased or direct attacks of certain readers who are ‘on their side’ go public – the counter voices are silenced by them, means, are not published.

Some or many of these people are teachers, educators or in other social occupations and voluntary work. Discriminating against people with a different opinion. And the problem is that many people don’t seem to be able to realize this subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) abuse of power.
And on internet, nobody can stop them.
Their way of moderating will sooner or later lead to a uniform blog with yeah-sayers or “it’s great what you write” with readers only exposed to one point of view, because everybody else will finally stop posting on such a blog, where there is a great chance of being censored.
It’s just annoying that people can distort what one writes but then you don’t have a chance to answer because your posts won’t be published.
They will only be published if you *kiss the moderators ass* by only writing what s/he wants to read or where s/he can play educator (can feel superior).
Translate this into real life and you know how power can be abused to impose a certain way of thinking and to try to force people to adapt to a certain concept and in the worst case finally giving up ones own identity.

Lies have to be protected and fractured lives of people without backbone have to use censorship as poor tool to hide their weakness.
Therefore being censored on white anti-racist messageboards etc. can be a compliment, nothing tells somebody more honestly that one just hit the nail and that the truth hurts deeply. Nonetheless it’s not only annoying but highly disturbing that those allegedly fighting for justice are those most afraid of free speech and unwilling to respect human rights.
Of course they refuse to listen, they refuse to learn, and some earn money with their arrogance and white power and the double-speek of whiteness. They come in the camouflage of ‘friend’…

For example, over at Racismreview somebody wrote to me:

I don’t consider JWBE’s observations some kind of gospel truth. In the social sciences, truth is dependent on whose and which perspective you’re speaking from. It’s not an exact science like physics or a math equation.
For example, her belief that people choose to be benevolent or evil at a “very early age”. Really? It’s that simple huh? So, life experiences don’t count? By 5 years old, we either side with Satan or the Archangel Gabriel? Well, that’s an interesting philosophy.
Next, people should do “What’s Right” despite what other people think of them. Sounds simple, but then again what constitutes “right” in the minds of some people does not constitute “right” in the minds of others.
I find JWBE so judgmental of humanity in general it borders on psychosis. She has such vitreolic hatred for so many people, I don’t believe this is healthy. Why should I take this brutish aggression seriously?
The point is JW is brutal, but her clarity of vision is up for debate. She brutally believes the white race is inherently flawed, some kind of demons sent to Earth to be “dismantled”. You don’t think that sounds a little neurotic?
What I hear is, “No von is goot enuf to be me! This blog tells the tale! Whites pretending to understand! They understand nothing, NOTHING!” Sorry, but I don’t find this RATIONAL. She speaks about the concept of “othering”. The only “other” person JWBE seems to truly listen to, or have any love for is JWBE. She appears to be blinded by her own fury. People sense a little over-the-edge psychosis here, and maybe that’s why her comments are shaded.
All human beings are a mixture of good and some “bad guy” stuff thrown in. None of us are unflawed folks. If we can make more good connections on this planet than negative ones, that’s about the best we can do.Link

It’s “great” to know, that those on Racismreview agree with that, because I have no chance to get a comment through. It’s telling that I am not allowed to respond to the distorted nonsense by this person.

February 8, 2010

Less than one week ago, I recognized that ingenuousness in the face of Jennifer Jones Austin, a highly accomplished and compassionate New York City attorney, wife, and mother of two who has spent the last 20 years advocating for disenfranchised children and families.

Although her life biography is filled with achievements and accolades, as of four months ago, 41 year old Austin faces the harsh reality that a diagnosis of Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) requires a bone marrow transplant.

In short, unless a donor steps forward in the next several months, Jennifer’s chances of survival greatly diminish.

Because a transplant may only occur between parties matching genetic tissue, it requires a donor who is of African descent. Unfortunately, since this group is dramatically underrepresented within national and international bone marrow registries, Jennifer’s challenge is magnified.

In spite of massive support and numerous bone marrow drives organized in the New York City area, none have succeeded in producing a match.

January 29, 2010

Statement of SPLC President Richard Cohen on President Obama’s pledge to reinvigorate civil rights enforcement

After a drastic decline in civil rights enforcement by the U.S. Justice Department over much of the past decade, President Obama’s declaration during last night’s State of the Union Address that his administration is “once again prosecuting civil rights violations” is a promising sign. We’d like to remind the president of one area that often gets overlooked — the responsibility to protect the rights of our most vulnerable children.

Across America, countless schoolchildren are being denied educational opportunities because of overly punitive, zero-tolerance policies that exclude them from the classroom and increase the odds they will drop out of school and enter the criminal justice system.

These children are disproportionately African American and Latino. Children with disabilities also are far more likely to be thrown out of the classroom — even while many schools ignore their legal obligation to provide the special services these children need to learn and succeed.

Tens of thousands of children each year are being arrested in school for petty misbehavior and routed into the juvenile justice system, where many are abused in brutal facilities that fail to provide rehabilitative and mental health services.

In fact, in a special report issued earlier this month, the Justice Department said that one in eight youths imprisoned in state, local or privately run correctional facilities have been raped or otherwise victimized sexually while in custody. That’s a shocking statistic, one that should offend every American’s sense of justice. But it doesn’t even begin to capture the true scope of the violence and neglect suffered by children behind bars, including the thousands of children who are sentenced to serve in dangerous adult prisons.

Justice Department research shows that youths imprisoned with adults are eight times more likely to commit suicide than those held in juvenile facilities, five times more likely to be sexually assaulted, three times more likely to be assaulted by prison staff and 50 percent more likely to be assaulted with a weapon.

In another report issued by the Bush administration, the Justice Department noted that six independent large-scale studies found “higher recidivism rates among juveniles convicted for violent offense in criminal court when compared with similar offenders retained in juvenile court.” The same report found that juveniles transferred into the adult system were significantly more likely to re-offend than juveniles who remain within the juvenile system.

The Southern Poverty Law Center and other organizations are taking action — filing complaints against negligent school districts and suing state and local governments that operate abusive detention centers.

But federal action is urgently needed to stop this unfolding civil rights crisis. A commitment by the Justice Department to crack down on these abuses would be a good place to start.

January 19, 2010

On Friday, the US’ leading entertainers will once again organise a star-studded telethon in order to raise money for victims of an almost incomprehensible tragedy – the third time they have done so in less than a decade.

The first, in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks, understandably avoided any sort of critical political imagery or discourse in favour of uniting the country in support of the victims.

The 2005 telethon in response to the devastation of New Orleans by Hurricane Katrina occurred at a tenser political moment, as violence was flaring in Iraq and Americans were beginning to question President Bush’s true motives for invading the country.

The massive incompetence surrounding the government relief effort was already apparent, but apart from rapper Kanye West declaring – to much criticism – that “President Bush doesn’t care about black people,” none of the artists who performed or spoke addressed the glaring structural problems that allowed the hurricane to produce such unprecedented damage.

But they are far from public view (aside from the poor and working class public of New Orleans, that is) and outside the cheery narrative of rebuilding and recovery symbolised by the success of the New Orleans’ football team, The Saints, who will host the city’s first Conference Championship game in the refurbished Superdome, which during the height of the Katrina disaster housed thousands of flood refugees.

As the carnage of the largest earthquake to hit Haiti in 200 years comes into full view, the biggest stars of Hollywood and the music industry are coming together for a “Hope for Haiti” telethon.

But there can be no hope for Haiti without justice, and no justice without an honest appraisal of the centuries-long history that set the country up for such a devastating political and social collapse in the wake of the earthquake.

January 17, 2010

Haiti. At the moment I lack once again the words for the many thoughts that come to mind. Language is a powerful tool and right now white supremacy becomes once again quite disgusting, how stories are being told without telling the whole story.

I found a blog with important information, for those not so interested in ‘white speech and self-praise’, but the truth:

“Shame on you Mr Obama asking Bush & Clinton to oversee humanitarian aid. After three days have passed and no aid has arrive the people are angry and taking their anger to the streets. That is called Violence and looting – not hunger and fear. The next step to further militarize the earthquake.”

James Bain spent more time in prison than any of the 246 inmates previously exonerated by DNA evidence nationwide, according to the Innocence Project of Florida. The longest-serving before him was James Lee Woodard of Dallas, who was released last year after spending more than 27 years in prison for a murder he did not commit.

“Nothing can replace the years Jamie has lost,” said Seth Miller, a lawyer for the project, which helped Bain win freedom. “Today is a day of renewal.”

Mr Bain made his first-ever mobile phone call on Thursday, dialling his elderly mother to tell her he had been freed.

Mobile devices did not exist in 1974, the year he was sentenced to life in prison for kidnapping a 9-year-old boy and raping him in a nearby field. Neither did the sophisticated DNA testing that officials more recently used to determine he could not have been the rapist.

As Mr Bain walked out of the Polk County courthouse on Thursday, wearing a black T-shirt that said “not guilty”, he spoke of his deep faith.

“No, I’m not angry,” he said. “Because I’ve got God.”

The 54-year-old said he was looking forward to eating fried turkey and drinking a Dr Pepper soda. He said he also hoped to continue his education.

Attorneys from the Innocence Project of Florida got involved in Mr Bain’s case earlier this year after he filed several previous petitions asking for DNA testing, all of which were thrown out.

He was convicted largely on the strength of the victim’s eyewitness identification, even though testing available at the time did not definitively link him to the crime.

The boy said his attacker had bushy sideburns and a moustache. The boy’s uncle, a former assistant principal at a high school, said it sounded like Mr Bain, a former student.

The boy picked Mr Bain out of a photo lineup, although there are lingering questions about whether detectives steered him.

The jury rejected Mr Bain’s story that he was home watching TV with his twin sister when the crime was committed, an alibi she repeated at a news conference last week. He was 19 when he was sentenced.

Florida last year passed a law that automatically grants former inmates found innocent $50,000 for each year they spent in prison. That means Mr Bain is entitled to $1.75 million (£1 million).